Autopsy shows Rochester man shot by officers 3 times

CONCORD — The Attorney General's Office Friday said Ben Shannon, 35, the man fatally shot Monday by officers trying to execute a warrant at Shannon's Rochester residence, sustained three gunshot wounds to the arms and torso.

Shannon was shot when three probation/parole officers from the Department of Corrections and a Strafford County Sheriff's deputy arrived to arrest Shannon at 28 Periwinkle Drive in the Sak's Mobile Home Park.

The autopsy was done by the Maine Medical Examiner's office because Shannon was taken to Maine Medical Center after he was shot and he died in Maine.

Assistant Attorney General Benjamin J. Agati said the cause of death is listed as homicide, which is a medical conclusion that a cause of death was inflicted by another person and is not a legal conclusion that a crime has occurred.

Agati also sought to clarify any confusion regarding the involvement of the Rochester Police Department. Agati said the Rochester Police responded to a report of shots fired. He said they were not present when the attempt to serve the warrant or when the shooting occurred, but arrived afterward.

Shannon had been arrested Feb. 17 for the robbery of a Rochester convenience store. Agati declined to say what the warrant was for, saying the investigation is continuing.

The AG's office is conducting the investigation because it is an officer-involved shooting. The AG's office is not identifying the officers involved.

Deputy Gross mysteriously disappeared when he went to Barre to collect $250 from a man found liable in a civil matter. The next day the deputies car was found in a wooded area east of Barre. The man...